Locals call to keep Irish language ATM service

SINN Féin Councillor Toiréasa Ferris has said she is very pleased with the response to the picket and petition she led outside Bank of Ireland’s Tralee Branch on Castle Street on Friday, as she called for Bank of Ireland to provide an Irish language option at its new ATMs.

The picket took place for one hour and garnered almost 200 signatures, Cllr Ferris told The Kerryman.

The event was organised by Sinn Féin, but also featured representatives from Irish language groups. It coincided with similar efforts outside Bank of Ireland branches nationwide.

“While it may not sound like a drastic decision by the bank, for the many Irish speakers who are keeping the language alive, it is a retrograde step” she said.

“It’s the official language of Ireland, this is the Bank of Ireland, and we’ve found that people are angry about this, and my understanding is that it is not expensive to provide this service.”

Bank of Ireland defended its decision not to provide an Irish language option at its new LATM machines. The bank said that the number of people using the service has been on a steady decline, and around one per cent of users currently use ATMs through Irish.

“I don’t see what difference that makes,” Cllr Ferris said on Friday.

“We received a great reaction and you could even see young people from the local Gaelscoil signing the petition. They’d like that option when they have accounts of their own in the years to come.

“If anything, you could see a rise in the number of people looking for an Irish language option in years to come.”

Photo by Fergus Dennehy. Ristárd Ó Fuaráin, Toiréasa Ferris, Martin Ferris and Cllr Robert Beasley pictured at the Irish Language ATM protest on Castle Street last week.